Travel Risk Atlas

Canada

North America · Capital Ottawa

Level 1 United States Exercise Normal Precautions FCDO United Kingdom No advisory against travel Green Netherlands Green — you can travel AA Germany No warning in force

Each opens that government's own advisory for Canada — the authoritative version, updated far faster than this page. Global Affairs Canada does not publish travel advice about its own country, so four governments are shown here rather than the usual five.

12.1 Very low risk
Atlas Risk Score · 24th safest of 220
trees near a mountain beside body of water during golden hour
Photo: Jacky Huang / Unsplash

Canada is a low-crime country where almost every serious risk to a visitor comes from distance, weather or wildlife rather than people. The cities are safe; the country between them is very large and often empty.

The financial risk is medical. Canada's public healthcare does not cover visitors, and an air ambulance out of a remote area runs into tens of thousands of dollars. Travel insurance is not optional here.

Where the risk actually is

Risk is rarely spread evenly across a country. The base colour is the code the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs gives Canada as a whole; shaded regions are those the UK Foreign Office names in an advisory against travel.

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warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningQuébec — No specific warningSaskatchewan — No specific warningYukon — No specific warningYukon — No specific warningGreat Bear LakeGreat Slave LakeMcLeod BayLake WinnipegLake ErieLake OntarioWollaston LakeReindeer LakeLake of the WoodsLake NipigonLake ManitobaLake WinnipegosisLake AthabascaLake MistassiniNettilling LakeDubawnt LakeBaker LakeLake ChamplainChurchill LakeLac la MartreCree LakeKasba LakeLac-à-l'Eau-ClaireLake NipissingScott LakeLake ClaireRainy LakeSplit LakeLake St. JosephAmadjuak LakeTeslin LakeLake BienvilleBlack LakeGrand LakeHottah LakeBig Trout LakeIsland LakeLac la RongeGods LakeYathkyed LakeAylmer LakeClinton-Colden LakeLac Île-à-la-CrosseWholdaia LakeTehek LakePoint LakeSandy LakeLynx LakeWashburn LakeNapaktulikTathlina LakeSelwyn LakeNonacho LakeAberdeen LakeContwoyto LakeNueltin LakeLesser Slave LakeLake PayneLac MintoGarry LakeZeta LakeLake SuperiorLake MichiganLake HuronSaginaw BayNorth ChannelGeorgian BaySouthern Indian LakeCedar LakeSipiwesk LacLac SeulLake AbitibiRéservoir de La Grande 2Réservoir ManicouaganRéservoir de La Grande 3Williston LakeFort Peck LakeLake SakakaweaLake OaheRéservoir GouinRéservoir PipmuacanLake Francis CaseRéservoir de CaniapiscauRéservoir de CaniapiscauKinbasket LakeLake DiefenbakerRéservoir Outardes QuatreGreat Salt LakeWhitefish LakeSmallwood Reservoir
What governments advise No specific warning

What the warnings actually cover

  • Whole country — No specific warning. No government currently advises against travel to any part of this country. The colour reflects general caution levels only, not a warned area.

Shading marks whole regions named in an advisory, but a warning is often narrower — a border strip, one road, or a single city. Read the wording, and check the official advisory linked below.

What drives the score

Each pillar is scored 0–100 against every other country. Longer bar = more risk.

Natural hazards
10% of score · mainly flooding, tsunami, earthquakes
46/100
155th of 220
Political stability
10% of score
19/100
19th of 220
Crime
15% of score
14/100
20th of 220
Road & transport
10% of score
11/100
36th of 220
Health & medical
15% of score
10/100
43rd of 220
Conflict & terrorism
15% of score
6/100
55th of 220
Official advisories
25% of score
0/100
23rd of 220
Women's safety
not in the score
45/100

Biggest factor here: natural hazards. Earthquakes, floods, cyclones, drought and tsunami exposure.

Practical facts

The things worth knowing before you land.

Emergency number
911
Police, fire and ambulance
Currency
CAD $
€1 ≈ 1.62 CAD
Languages
English
French
Visa (EU passport)
eTA required
US: 180 days visa-free · UK: eTA required
Population
41.7m
World Bank 2025
Capital
Ottawa
Driving
On the right
5.3 road deaths per 100k
Power
Type A, B
110-127V
Safely managed water
97%
Widely available · of residents, not a tap-water verdict
Dialling code
+1
GDP per capita
$56k
A rough guide to price levels
Visitors a year
32.4m
International arrivals, 2019

When to go

Average daytime high and nightly low for Ottawa, over 2010-2019. Bars are rainfall; the colour band is how hot the days get.

Mildest and driest around May to September.

Daytime high freezing cold mild warm hot
Top figure is the average daytime high, below it the average nightly low, and millimetres of rain under each bar. Figures are the average daytime high; bar heights are the month's rainfall. Shaded months are the mild, drier ones. Source: NASA POWER daily observations, 2010-2019, public domain. Canada is big. These numbers describe Ottawa only — elsewhere in the country can be nothing like it.

Common scams in Canada

Patterns reported repeatedly by travellers and local police. None of this is about individual businesses — it's about set-ups you can learn to spot in seconds.

The CRA and immigration phone scam

Nationwide, by phoneVery common

Callers claim to be from the Canada Revenue Agency, the RCMP or immigration, allege an unpaid tax bill or a visa problem, and demand immediate payment in gift cards, wire transfer or crypto, threatening arrest or deportation. Visitors and new arrivals are specifically targeted.

How to avoid it: No Canadian government agency demands payment by gift card or threatens immediate arrest by phone. Hang up and call the agency's published number if in doubt.

Sources Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre

Vehicle break-ins at trailheads and viewpoints

Vancouver, Banff and Jasper trailheads, MontrealVery common

Cars parked at popular trailheads and scenic pull-offs are broken into within minutes. Rental cars are identifiable and are specifically targeted. Vancouver has a long-running problem with this.

How to avoid it: Leave nothing visible — not a bag, not a charging cable. Take passports and electronics with you rather than locking them in the boot at the trailhead.

Sources Parks Canada — visitor safety

Cannabis across the border

US land and air bordersOccasional

Cannabis is legal in Canada and remains federally illegal in the United States. Carrying any amount across the border, in either direction, is a federal offence and has resulted in lifetime US entry bans.

How to avoid it: Never carry cannabis to the border. Answering a US officer's question about past use untruthfully is itself grounds for a ban.

Sources UK FCDO Canada — safety and security

Risk hotspots

Specific places that come up again and again — either in government advisories or in traveller reports. Everywhere else in Canada is not automatically fine, but these are the areas worth a plan.

Remote highways without coverage Traffic

Northern and prairie highways run for hours between services with no mobile signal. Breakdowns in winter become survival situations.

Bear country in the Rockies Wildlife

Grizzly and black bear encounters occur on popular trails. Carry bear spray where recommended, know how to use it, and follow park food-storage rules — they exist because of fatalities.

Downtown Eastside, Vancouver Street crime

Concentrated poverty and open drug use a few blocks from the tourist waterfront. Property crime and unpredictable behaviour rather than targeted violence against visitors.

Cold-water lakes and rivers Natural hazard

Canadian lakes stay cold all summer and cold-water shock drowns strong swimmers. Most drownings involve no lifejacket.

Healthcare costs visitors real money

Provincial health insurance covers residents, not tourists. A hospital stay is billed at private rates, and a medical evacuation from a northern or mountain area — where road access may not exist — is routinely a five-figure bill.

Check that your policy covers the activities you plan. Skiing, snowmobiling, backcountry hiking and boating are commonly excluded or need an add-on.

Distance and winter driving

Canadian road distances are longer than they look. Stretches of the Trans-Canada, and most northern highways, run for hours without fuel, food or mobile coverage. Carry water, a paper map and a full tank.

Winter driving means black ice, whiteouts and short daylight. Several provinces mandate winter tyres in season and rental cars do not always have them — ask. Wildlife collisions, especially with moose at dawn and dusk, kill people every year and a moose strike is not survivable in the way a deer strike usually is.

Compare with neighbours

Sources for this page

Vaccinations, malaria and outbreaks. This atlas does not give medical advice — it is personal, it changes, and it is the one thing worth getting from a doctor. Both national services publish current advice for Canada:

CDC Travelers' HealthTravelHealthPro (NHS/UKHSA)

Check the official advisory before you book. This page reflects data as of August 2026. Advisories change without warning, and only your own government's advice affects your travel insurance.